August 2017

Sky and Star have both stalled out in the spots they have been for a few days. Gemini moved a little bit but is still just a few miles east of the nest. Apollo had not checked in for more than a week and her map shows she has been busy going south, then north almost to Des Moines and the turning south again and ending up near Kansas City.

Mercury checked in today along with another ping from Sky up in Canada. The only one I did not hear from was Apollo, but it has only been two days since the last ping from her transmitter. Sky seems to be on the move a bit in Canada and Mercury is staying along the Cedar River in Iowa about half way between the Quad Cities and Iowa City.

After hiding for about 37 days, Sky checked in today and is further north into Canada. The map below shows his route from the time he last checked in until today. Star continues to hang out along the Mississippi around Genoa, Wisconsin. Mercury and Apollo did not check in, but Gemini did and is still close by along the Rock River on the Illinois side of the Quad Cities.

I did not get a chance to check the maps from yesterday until this morning. Much to my surprise after Gemini and Apollo have been hanging out together for the last couple of weeks, Apollo headed south in a big way from Monday afternoon until yesterday afternoon. Apollo went almost straight south passing by Galesburg on a one day speed trip. It will be interesting to see if Gemini decides to follow that lead in the coming days. Star checked in, but stayed in about the same spot along the Mississippi. No word yesterday from Sky or Mercury.

Sky has now gone 30 days in Canada without checking in. Mercury has also gone quiet for five days. Below are the charts for Star, Gemini and Apollo. Gemini and Apollo are still hanging out a few miles east of the nest along the Rock River in Illinois. Star continues a slow trip south and is sticking along the Mississippi River between Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Star continues a slow but steady trip south and is now along the Mississippi River between Minnesota and Wisconsin. Mercury is along the Cedar River in Iowa about 30 or so miles WSW from the nest. Gemini and Apollo are still east of the nest. Gemini is along the Rock River in Illinois and Apollo is a bit further east along what appears to be a creek just south of Interstate 88.

Still no report from Sky. Star on the other hand is headed south. As of this afternoon she is about half way between Eau Claire and LaCrosse, Wisconsin. At the same time after spending the week heading south, Mercury has turned north and is now about half way between Iowa City and Davenport, Iowa. Gemini and Apollo are still fairly close to town although Apollo had a more active 24 hours than Gemini.

Gemini and Apollo have left the nest, but they have not traveled very far in doing so. Both are close together and only a few miles east of the nest area. They are hanging out along Interstate 80 and the Rock River. It will be interesting to see how long they stay this close to the nest. While that is going on, Mercury has meandered a little further south and is now just past Burlington, Iowa. Still no work from Sky, while Star is still in the middle of Wisconsin hanging out around some farm fields.

It was great to see Liberty and Justice stop by the nest this weekend. I think all three kids are in the process of moving on, however Gemini and Apollo (as of yesterday afternoon) are still not that far away. Mercury has headed a bit further south along the Mississippi and as of yesterday was between Burlington and Fort Madison. Gemini and Apollo are just a bit east of the metro area. Sky still has not checked in, but Star has moved a bit south from Lake Superior.